1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a distribution terminal for a wire-type fusible link, and more particularly to an improved technique for securing the reliability when a multi-way connection is used.
2. Background Art
As disclosed for example in JP-UM-A-54-48382, an FLW (Fusible Link Wire) which is a wire-type fusible link includes a fusible conductor, a first insulator coated on the fusible conductor, and a second insulator coated on the first insulator. The first insulator withstands high temperatures when the fusible conductor is melted, and the second insulator is fused and changed in color when the fusible conductor is melted. With respect to the structure of a fuse using an FLW, so-called LA (an abbreviation of an automotive eyelet terminal in JIS) terminals (eyelet terminals) 503 and 503 or ordinary terminals are crimped respectively to opposite ends of the FLW 50 to provide an input portion 505 and an output portion 507, respectively, as shown in FIG. 6.
In a typical example of use, the LA terminal 503 of the input portion 505 is fastened and connected (threadedly fastened) by a nut 513 to a battery terminal bolt 511 formed on a battery terminal 509, as shown in FIG. 7A. When a multi-way connection is used, a plurality of LA terminals 503 and 503 are superposed together, and are threadedly fastened to the battery terminal bolt 511 as shown in FIG. 7B. It has also been proposed to meet a multi-way connection by providing a structure in which fusible conductors are joined together, and are crimped to a crimp portion of an LA terminal 503 (by so-called double crimping) as shown in FIG. 7C.
However, in the fuse structure using the FLW, when the LA terminals 503 and 503 are used in the superposed condition as shown in FIG. 7B so as to meet the multi-way connection, the number of contact points at the portions threadedly fastened to the battery terminal 509 increases, so that the reliability is not entirely satisfactory. Namely, the plurality of terminals are held together in a multi-layer condition with a predetermined fastening force by a bolt-and-nut arrangement including the fastening means 511 and 513, and therefore areas of contact (contact points) of the terminals increase, and therefore press-contacting forces of the contact points are liable to be lowered and also to become uneven. Particularly with respect to the double crimping shown in FIG. 7C, although the number of contact points at the threadedly-fastened portion does not increase, there is a possibility that the cross-sectional area of each wire may be decreased by the crimping, and it is not certain which portion of the fusible conductor of each FLW is decreased in cross-sectional area and also how much the cross-sectional area is decreased, and it was expected that variations in these became large. As a result, there was a possibility that melting characteristics of the FLWs 501 might be varied.